How to start a business in Florida: LLCs, licenses and taxes

• Choose a structure. An LLC is the most common because it separates your personal assets from the business.
• Register your LLC on Sunbiz: $125 (filing plus registered agent).
• Get your EIN free at irs.gov — it’s your business’s “Social Security number.” Never pay another site for it.
• Get a Local Business Tax Receipt from your county and, if applicable, your city.
• If your trade requires it (construction, electrical, A/C, beauty, real estate), get a state license from the DBPR.
• If you sell goods or certain services, register to collect sales tax with the Florida Department of Revenue.
• Open a business bank account.
• Get liability insurance (and workers’ comp if you have employees).

Every year between January 1 and May 1 you must file your LLC’s annual report on Sunbiz. Filing late costs a $400 penalty.

• Florida allows many home-based businesses, although your HOA may have its own rules.
• Florida’s cottage food law lets you sell certain homemade foods — bread, cookies, candy — without a license, up to an annual sales limit. Foods that need refrigeration (meats, cream pies) require a license and a commercial kitchen.

• Prospera: free consulting for Hispanic entrepreneurs, in Spanish.
• Florida SBDC at UCF: free consulting on business plans and loans.
• SCORE: experienced volunteer mentors.

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